Nicole Koehly, a Santa Ana resident, has been playing tennis at Match Point Tennis Academy (above) since she was 11. She received a three-year tennis scholarship from the academy in high school. JOSH MORGAN, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

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Santa Ana resident Nicole Koehly, 21, was recruited to UC Davis to play tennis after high school. She is now a rising senior.JOSH MORGAN, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

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Nicole Koehly, a tennis player attending UC Davis, practices with her coach, Elson De Cantuaria at Match Point Tennis Academy in Santa Ana. JOSH MORGAN, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

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Nicole Koehly, a tennis player attending UC Davis, practices with her longtime coach Elson De Cantuaria at Match Point Tennis Academy in Santa Ana. JOSH MORGAN, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

The way Nicole Koehly describes it, she and tennis have had their ups and downs.

“I’ve always had a rocky relationship with tennis,” said Koehly, 21, standing on an empty court at Santa Ana’s Match Point Tennis Academy.

From painful tendinitis to stellar matches, the sport has been a challenge in more than a few ways. Yet this talented athlete has been persistently hitting the court since the age of five – she started seriously playing at eight years old and never stopped.

“I’ve learned and come to realize that tennis has done a lot for me, and it’s gotten me here so far,” Koehly, now a fourth-year film studies student on UC Davis’ tennis team. “It’s kind of a bittersweet moment, going into senior year.”

Dina Koehly remembers when her daughter was barely starting out, she was so little and slight that “the tennis racket was so heavy that she had to use both hands on a forehand swing.” These days, Nicole Koehly has a forehand that scares people, according to her coach. Elson De Cantuaria, the director of Match Point at Cabrillo Tennis Center, has guided Koehly since the age of 11. He has watched as she gradually found her footing as a player and worked her way up the United States Tennis Association rankings. The back of Match Point’s T-shirts spell “I can, I want, I believe” – a mantra of De Cantuaria’s that he instilled in Koehly at a young age.

She lost a practice match against a German athlete and also lost her temper in the process, De Cantuaria said. Being a disciplined coach, he made the 15-year-old write over and over in her notebook, “I can, I want, I believe” – and later immortalized it in their shirts.

For De Cantuaria, spending so much time teaching his talented charges means that he inevitably feels like a part of their upbringing and development. A comfortable exchange volleys back and forth between coach and player as yellow balls thwop on the court.

“Elson really knows his stuff,” Nicole Koehly said. “He gives me life lessons. I can talk to him about anything that I’m worried about.”

In 10th grade, she was the first to receive a scholarship from Match Point, which paid for three days per week of practice and match play at the academy as well as consulting/coaching from De Cantuaria. The scholarship program has grown from six to 10 athletes this year; students who either live in Santa Ana or attend the Santa Ana Unified School District are welcome to apply, and are required to maintain a B average in school once in the program. The scholarship, which is about $2,250, is just for six months, but students can continue reapplying – Nicole Koehly received the scholarship for three years, De Cantuaria said.

“Playing tournaments, shoes, rackets, traveling – honestly, it is not hard for a parent to spend $1,000 a month on one child, if they’re into it and dedicated,” said Craig Koehly, father to Nicole and her sister Madelyn, also a tennis player. Receiving the scholarship helped offer a financial cushion, explained Dina Koehly. Craig Koehly estimated that the cost for all of Nicole’s tennis playing to be close to $70,000-80,000.

It paid off. She was ranked in the top 10 for the 16-and-under singles and then the 18-and-under singles among USTA southern California juniors, not to mention No. 101 in the nation for her recruiting class, according to Babolat. Junior year saw Nicole beat a No. 2 seed in a tournament – her “favorite match of all time” – and senior year she signed to UC Davis after being courted by a number of schools for tennis.

But she is blunt about her feelings toward tennis, explaining the “mental and physical struggle” the sport produced. Unlike some of her fellow tennis teammates, she is less motivated by love of the sport than her own personal drive.

“Nicole is an example of what a strong routine and work ethic can do for anybody, on and off the field,” De Cantuaria said. “Tennis doesn’t come easy for her but she finds a way to do it…what she accomplished is very, very high.”

During senior year of high school, burnout took its toll, and it required an extra push from her dad to get back on the court. After all of the hours of practice and effort poured into the sport, she was still not about to quit.

“I took some time off, and when I came back after a month of not playing, I realized I loved it and missed it,” Nicole Koehly said.

These days, she is more grateful for what tennis has given her than anything else. Her renewed dedication and love for competition have still made her a notable force at UC Davis, where she pulled out a 16-7 record last season for singles. During fall, she would wake up at 5:30 a.m. for track sprints and weights and didn’t finish until after 6 p.m. class. When asked what else she is involved in, she laughs, “Um…tennis?”

“It’s helped me do great in school and be an overall better person,” Nicole Koehly said. “I’ve come to look back and be very thankful that I’ve played tennis.”

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